Jamaica has now confirmed 53 cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, gave an update at a press conference on Friday (April 3) at Jamaica House. “This follows six new additions over the last 48 hours,” he said. The new cases are: a 58-year-old male from Manchester, who is a contact of...

     

Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, says the House of Representatives is expected to commence deliberations on the Tourism Workers’ Pension Scheme regulations at its next sitting. Speaking during a digital media briefing at the Ministry on Thursday (April 2), Mr. Bartlett indicated that he tabled a motion in the House on March 31, seeking to bring the regulations, which are...

The Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) is launching a weekly series of webinars called ‘JBDC Virtual Biz Zone’, for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), with the first session scheduled for Tuesday, April 7. Speaking with JIS News, JBDC’s Corporate Communications Manager, Suzette Campbell, said the organisation would be emphasising business continuity as industries grapple with the effect of the...

Persons utilising the Ministry of Justice’s Restorative Justice Unit are still able to access services, as the unit remains open, but it is scaling down operations and cancelling sensitisation sessions. Restorative justice (RJ), an alternative dispute resolution method, can be accessed through referrals from the police and the courts as well as self-referrals by persons involved in conflicts. The scaling...

The St. James Poor Relief Department has put special measures in place to safeguard indigent persons against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Speaking in an interview with JIS News, Inspector of Poor for St. James, Pauline Lecky, said poor-relief officers have been visiting the homes of the parish’s 1,418 registered poor, distributing care packages containing essential food and personal care items...

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, says the Government is considering publishing the names of persons who arrived in the country between March 18 and 23 and have failed to report to the Ministry. “We are just looking at one aspect of the law to ensure that we are on good grounds to do that. I...